A former British soldier who sparked a manhunt after escaping from prison before his trial was sentenced to 14 years for spying for Iran by a UK court on Monday.
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Daniel Khalife, 23, was found guilty of espionage and terrorism charges as well as for escaping prison last November.
A judge at Woolwich Crown Court in southeast London sentenced him to 14 years jail and three months for embarking on a “dangerous and fantastical plan” that involved passing sensitive information to Iranian intelligence for cash.
Khalife, whose mother is Iranian, gathered information over a two-and-a-half-year period while posted in Britain and United States, including the names of elite special forces personnel, before being arrested and charged in 2023.
“The mere fact that you started on this dangerous and fantastical plan demonstrates your immaturity and lack of wisdom,” Justice Bobbie Cheema-Grubb said.
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Prosecutors accused Khalife of playing a “cynical game”, getting in contact with a man linked to Iranian intelligence after joining the British army.
He subsequently told British intelligence he wanted to be a double agent, in what his defence lawyer termed a “hapless” ploy.